TY - JOUR
T1 - Organic mulches reduce crop attack by sweetpotato weevil (Cylas formicarius)
AU - Rehman, Mudassir
AU - Liu, Jian
AU - Johnson, Anne C.
AU - Dada, Taiwo Esther
AU - Gurr, Geoff M.
PY - 2019/10/16
Y1 - 2019/10/16
N2 - Mulching
with organic materials is a management practice with long history for
weed suppression, soil water conservation and erosion control. Its
potential impact on crop pests is less well explored. Here we report its
utility for reducing crop damage by the serious pest, sweetpotato
weevil (Cylas formicarius). Laboratory bioassays measured the
response of adult female weevils to sweetpotato storage roots beneath
mulches of fresh or dried plant materials. Weevils were significant
repelled by fresh basil, catnip, basil lime and dry eucalyptus, cypress,
lucerne and sugarcane. A subsequent field study found that mulches of
dry cypress, eucalyptus and lucerne reduced movement of weevils from a
release point to reach sweetpotato plants and lowered level of damage to
storage roots. Results demonstrate that mulching with organic materials
merits further testing as part of the integrated management of
sweetpotato weevil, particularly to protect developing storage roots
during dry periods when soil cracking can facilitate access by pests.
AB - Mulching
with organic materials is a management practice with long history for
weed suppression, soil water conservation and erosion control. Its
potential impact on crop pests is less well explored. Here we report its
utility for reducing crop damage by the serious pest, sweetpotato
weevil (Cylas formicarius). Laboratory bioassays measured the
response of adult female weevils to sweetpotato storage roots beneath
mulches of fresh or dried plant materials. Weevils were significant
repelled by fresh basil, catnip, basil lime and dry eucalyptus, cypress,
lucerne and sugarcane. A subsequent field study found that mulches of
dry cypress, eucalyptus and lucerne reduced movement of weevils from a
release point to reach sweetpotato plants and lowered level of damage to
storage roots. Results demonstrate that mulching with organic materials
merits further testing as part of the integrated management of
sweetpotato weevil, particularly to protect developing storage roots
during dry periods when soil cracking can facilitate access by pests.
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U2 - 10.1038/s41598-019-50521-5
DO - 10.1038/s41598-019-50521-5
M3 - Article
C2 - 31619690
AN - SCOPUS:85073469566
SN - 2045-2322
VL - 9
JO - Scientific Reports
JF - Scientific Reports
IS - 1
M1 - 14860
ER -